For last year’s words belong to last year’s language
And next year’s words await another voice.
And to make an end is to make a beginning.
T.S. Eliot, “Little Gidding”

Have you decided what your new beginnings are to be made of in 2010? For me, I find it difficult to hone in on just one aspect of my life that I wish to improve. There is so much to focus on in just 365 days! I want my resolutions to be purpose-driven, realistic, yet challenging. So, as the New Year is upon us, I am pledging to fine-tune several parts of my life. In fact, I have already started! Here are a few pointers to keep us committed to our resolutions.

Commit your goals to paper, say them aloud, and then actually do them. “I wish” and “I hope” are not at all synonymous with “I am.” There is a huge difference between saying that you will do something and actually doing it. The first step to actually achieving your goals is to make the commitment itself a reality. If you keep your goal to yourself, locked away in your own mind, it is easy to forget and postpone. It also inhibits you from gaining outside support, a vital key to bolstering your efforts when you lose your willpower and get discouraged. For example, if I secretly pledge to lose that dreaded five (hopefully not ten) pounds gained from holiday gluttony, how will my husband know not to keep temptations like sugar cookie cut-outs around me? If we are both aware of my goal, then he can help keep me on-track and be my shoulder to lean on when I need him.

Another great example of this is my actual, current resolution that I am actively fulfilling in 2010. Last year I found myself repeatedly saying, “I hope to one day go back for my master’s degree.” My wishing, hoping, and postponing, I soon realized, was a lot of hot air getting me nowhere. Then, I actually committed by gathering and completing admissions materials, taking the dreaded GREs, and enrolling! So now in 2010 (starting January 12, to be exact) I will find myself back in academia—maintaining my position at Ivy House by day and pursuing my master’s degree at North Carolina State University by night. It is a life-changing, challenging commitment that much planning has gone into. Without my actual commitment and without my husband’s support, I could still be my old 2008 and 2009 self, but I am not!

Remind yourself of the benefits of the better you. Understand the motivation behind your resolution and know why you are about to embark on the journey to where you want to be. Keep these benefits in focus at all times, especially if you are tempted to go off-course. I have a friend that aspired to confidently fit into a bikini by beach season. To keep her focused, she put a photo of her dream bikini on her pantry door. Anytime that she wanted to sneak some sweets, the cute, little bikini would scold her.

Reward yourself for meeting benchmarks. Rewarding yourself for each milestone met will help keep you motivated through your journey to the better you. This is not to say that you should light up to reward yourself for not smoking for a month, or that you should eat a cupcake to celebrate weight loss. Find ways to pat yourself on your back without compromising your goals. When I handed in the last of my admissions materials, for example, my husband and I celebrated by going out on the town for a fun-filled date night. It feels great to be cheered on!

Don’t overwhelm yourself with too many goals and keep your goals realistic. As I said, there is much that I want to focus on in 2010! I would love to start the master’s program while simultaneously reading more books for pleasure, decluttering my guest room (quite the feat!), volunteering more often, journaling and blogging a page per day, becoming more active, and being an all-over Superwoman. However, I have to remind myself that I can’t spread myself too thin. Focusing on too many goals will just make anyone frustrated, miserable, and stressed out. When your goals aren’t manageable, it’s likely that they’ll be stuffed in the “I wish” pile like last year. Think about maintaining the quality of your life, while also maintaining your goals, and creating an environment conducive to success. If you absolutely loathe jogging and your goal is to be more fit, find an alternative, realistic route to get there. Perhaps yoga or kickboxing would be more appealing.

Hopefully these tips will keep us on track in 2010. I’d love to hear back from you about your New Year’s resolutions, including updates on your progess. In the meantime, Happy Holidays, Happy New Year, and good luck!

About The Author: ahardin

Ashley Hardin is Publishing Coordinator at Ivy House Publishing Group. She graduated from Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania in 2006 with a degree in English Professional Writing. During her time at Slippery Rock, she authored a guidebook about her alma mater. Today, Ashley’s passion for the written word is a constant catalyst in her mission to assist independent authors in fulfilling their publishing dreams. Through her knowledge of language, communication, and current trends in the publishing industry, Ashley assists authors every step of the way in creating marketable, successful books of all genres. By authoring Ivy House’s quarterly newsletter, “Author’s Corner,” Ashley continues to share her publishing wisdom and marketing insight with the writing community. Ivy House continuously accepts unsolicited manuscripts of all genres. If you are interested in having your work evaluated, or just want to say hello, Ashley can be reached at ahardin@ivyhousebooks.com.

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